Penguins Feel Boyle Can Bring a Lot to the Team - BlueJackets.com

Back in the spring, Penguins brass watched as Brian Boyle captained Team USA to a bronze medal at the World Championship.

Despite his most recent NHL season coming in 2019-20, the big forward (who measures 6-foot-6 and 245 pounds) managed to make a big impact in his first appearance on the international stage in every level - and got Pittsburgh's representatives thinking about the possibility of Boyle doing the same here.

"Our guys watched him and were really impressed with his game," said Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan, who was behind the bench as an assistant with the New York Rangers during Boyle's time there. "I think it was a great indication, with how well he played, that he could contribute and help us here. He's a guy that brings a certain skillset in areas that we think we can improve and get better in. He brings a lot of size to our team. He's hard to play against."

So the Penguins signed the veteran of 12 NHL seasons to a professional tryout contract, and now, Boyle's opportunity looms all the more larger with the news that both Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin will be sidelined to start the season.

"I've played under Sully before and obviously played against this team before," said Boyle, who has also spent time with Los Angeles, Tampa Bay, Toronto, New Jersey, Nashville and Florida. "It's a chance for me to get back in the league on a good team, a really good team. The roster speaks for itself. … Having an opportunity to try and make it, with some familiarity, it's a little more comforting coming into a little bit of an uncomfortable situation without a contract."

Boyle had to chuckle when thinking about the drills that Sullivan ran during the first day of training camp on Thursday, as he had been doing some of them last season to try and stay in game shape. And while it was a challenging day getting back up to speed, Penguins general manager Ron Hextall felt like Boyle was off to a good start.

"Brian, we know him as a player," Hextall said. "He hasn't played in probably a year and a half now in the NHL, so we're kind of looking for his sharpness, his legs. I liked him out there this morning. He's a big body. He's a penalty killer. He's a faceoff guy. He's a checker. He didn't have to come in here and light it up. He's at the point where we feel he's a role player, and we'll see what he does the rest of camp."

Boyle, who won the 2018 Masterton Trophy following his cancer diagnosis during training camp in 2017, obviously would have preferred to be playing last season. He said it was disappointing not to get a call, especially as he performed well with the Panthers in 2019-20 - recording six goals, nine assists, and 15 points in 39 games, plus one goal in four postseason games.

But the silver lining was that he got to spend more time with his family and take his two young kids, son Declan and daughter Isabella, to their various activities.

"That was a cool, really, really fun, fun year for me, with my son starting hockey and watching my daughter go to dance," Boyle said. "Then every night I'd put on games and watch them and really hope for another opportunity to play, because my mind was still there and my body was still there. It was awkward and it was different, but there were a lot of positives and there were a lot of great memories and great opportunities to spend a lot of time with people at home."

Video: Brian Boyle talks to the media after practice.

Boyle finally got the call this summer, and is now in Pittsburgh ready to challenge for a spot. Sullivan has complete confidence that he is mentally and physically prepared to do so, especially once he starts getting into more intrasquad scrimmages.

"I've coached Brian in the past, so I know him real well," Sullivan said. "He's a real good player, he's going to bring a lot of leadership to our team. He's a good pro. He always trains so hard; he keeps himself in such great shape. Just overall, he's a smart player and he's a good pro. That makes me think that the way he takes care of himself, that he's going to be just fine."

Boyle scored a hat trick at PPG Paints Arena during the 2018-19 season as a member of the Devils in a 5-1 victory on Hockey Fights Cancer night. On the other side of that was Bryan Rust, who skated on a line with Boyle during today's sessions.

"He's a very big body, plays the game smart, knows where to be on the ice. He's obviously been around for a long time," Rust said. "He plays smart and plays hard. He has an intelligent mind and can bring a better leadership presence to our locker room."

As the roster becomes more fleshed out over the coming weeks, Boyle knows what the task at hand is for him to be a part of this team.

"I've just got to play the way I play, really," he said. "What are things that I have to do to separate me from other players? I think there's one that's obvious that sticks out that everyone can see, so I need to be able to use that.

"There's things I can still do, so if I get an opportunity, I'm going to try and do it. There's not going to be any regrets at the end of it, no matter what.

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Penguins Feel Boyle Can Bring a Lot to the Team - BlueJackets.com
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